Improvement in redlining-chairs



.l. S. LEAS.

Reclining Chair.

No. 163,218, Patnted Mayll,1875.

THE GRAPHIC C0.PHOTO L THJQ &4l PARK PLACLNAY.

UNITED STATES PATENT Orrron.

J. SILAS LEAS, OF ROCK ISLAND, ILLINOIS.

IMPROVEMENT IN RECLlNlNG-CHAIRS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 163,218, dated May 11,1875; application filed November 25, 1874.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, J. S. LEAS, of Rock Island, in the county of RockIsland and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Reclining-Chairs; and I do hereby declare that thefollowing is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings, and to the. letters of referencemarked thereon, which form part of this specification.

The nature of my invention consists in the construction and arrangementof a recliningchair, as will be hereinafter more fully set forth.

In order to enable others skilled in the art to which my inventionappertains to make and use the same, I will now proceed to describe itsconstruction and operation, referring to the annexed drawing, in whichFigures 1 and 2 represent central vertical sections, showing oppositesides of my chair.

A A represent the side pieces of my chair, each being provided with arocker, B, and made with said rocker either in one or more pieces, asdesired. The side pieces A A are suitably connected to form theseat-frame O, and the rockers are connected about midway under the seatby a round, a. D represents the frame of the chair-back, hinged to therear rail of the seat-frame O. From each side of the back frame D, onthe inner side, projects a curved metal bar, b, downward and forward,the lower end of which bar is pointed, and takes into a'ratchet-bar, d.This ratchet-bar is pivoted at its lower rear end to the inner side ofthe side piece or rocker, and its upper end is held in position by meansof a spring, 6. Immediately above the upper ends of the curvedratchet-bars d d, and through the side pieces A A, passes a shaft, h,provided on one or both ends with a knob, f, and near each end it isprovided with a lug or projection, 4;.

By turning the shaft h by means of the knob f the lugs i will press theratchet bars 01 d away from the ends of the bars I) b, so as to allow ofthe back D being lowered, and as soon as the pressure is removed fromthe shaft h the springs e throw the rack-bars d into position again, andthus the back D may be adjusted and held at any angle desired.

It will readily be seen that the back D can be raised without the use ofthe shaft h and its lugs i simply by taking hold of it and lifting itup. It is only for lowering the back that the shaft h need to be used.

In place of the above-described device for adjusting the back D, the barI) may have a curved or segmental extension, I), projecting toward therear, and passing through a loop, f, said segmental bars being held atany point desired by means of eccentrics i, made fast on a shaft, h.

G represents a foot-rest, which is attached at its ends to the frontends of two curved bars, m m, which pass through guide-loops n a,attached to the inner sides of the rockers B B, so that the foot-restcan be drawn out more or less, and project any desired distance in frontof the chair. It is held firmly in the desired position by means ofnotches 00 00, made in the lower edges of the bars m m, to catch on theloops n. This foot-rest may be applied to any reclining or invalidchair, whether of the construction above described or any other.

I am well aware that it is not new to regulate the hinged back of areclining-chair by means of a pawl and ratchet, and then I shall confinemyself to my special arrangement of devices for this purpose.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. The combination, with the chair-frame A B G and hinged back D, of thebars I), hinged or pivoted ratchet-bars d, and springs e, substantiallyas and for the purposes herein set forth.

2. The shaft h, provided with lugs or projections M and knob f, or itsequivalent, in combination with the pivoted ratchet-bars cl, springs e,and bars I), as and for the purposes herein set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I affix my signaturein presence of two witnesses.

J. SILAS LEAS.

Witnesses ELLSWORTH MAPES, O. M. YANGON.

